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Kidney-Leaved Habenaria
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Kidney-Leaved Habenaria
ative Photo: David Young
Common name: Kidney-Leaved Habenaria, Gnome’s Cap Orchid
Botanical name: Habenaria reniformis     Family: Orchidaceae (Orchid family)

A rare orchid from India, often misidentified with Habenaria diphylla as it has two leaves. But the shape of the leaves identifies it - the leaves are kidney shaped. Tiny white flowers occur on slender erect stem. Plant is 18-20 cm tall, with stem rather slender, with 1 or 2 leaves at base and 3 or 4 bractlike leaves above. Leaf blade almost spreading horizontally, round, ovate-heart-shaped, or kidney-shaped, 1.8-2.5 x 1.5-2.7 cm, fleshy. Flowers are borne in a sparsely 4- or 5-flowered raceme, 7-8 cm, hairless. Floral bracts are lanceshaped, small, 6-8 mm. Flowers are green to white, small. Dorsal sepal erect, concave, narrowly ovate-oblong, about 5 × 1.7 mm, 3-veined, tip blunt; lateral sepals spreading or reflexed, obliquely ovate-lanceshaped, about 6 × 1.5 mm, 3-veined, tip tapering. Petals oblique, narrowly lanceshaped, about 4.5 x 1 mm, 1-veined, tip subblunt; lip linear, slightly longer than or about as long as sepals, usually with 1 tooth on either side below middle; spur often absent; stigmas subcylindric or club-shaped, about 1.5 mm. Flowering: September-October.

Identification credit: Pankaj Kumar Photographed in Goa, Jharkhand & Maharashtra.

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